4 to 3 — Columbia City Council votes final time to repeal ban on conversion therapy

COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — City of Columbia council members held a second and final vote of 4-3 Tuesday afternoon, deciding to repeal its 2021 ban on conversion therapy.

The meeting began like previous ones, allowing members of the LGBTQ community, licensed therapists, and allies to address the council.

This time, many speakers directly addressed council members who voted to repeal the ban.

“By repealing this ban, you’re actively making our capital city less hospitable and more hostile,” says one community member, after explaining how she endured harmful religious counseling in her college years. She says she now attends a church that’s accepting of the LGBTQ community — the same church as Councilman Will Brennan, who voted to repeal the ban during the first reading.

Another speaker, the mother of a transgender daughter., also addressed Brennan, at one point saying, “I love my children just as much as you love yours — all of them.”

Yet another speaker, Marcurius Byrd, pleaded with Councilman Ed McDowell, saying, “Two weeks ago we stood at church to be men on the wall together, and I’m asking you to be a man on the wall with me — and these LGBTQ people — and to please consider voting for the people of Columbia and changing your vote.”

“There’s so many people that commit suicide over this, and the ones that don’t — I’ve ended up working with them in meetings over substance abuse,” says John Brunty, a local substance abuse recovery and life coach.

“(Columbia) is a refuge city for people in South Carolina. It is where we can feel safe where we can walk down the streets holding hands, its the only city here,” says local attorney Nekki Shutt.

But in the end, the votes remained unchanged, with Mayor Daniel Rickenmann, and council members Peter Brown, Will Brennan and Ed McDowell voting to repeal the ban.

Council members Aditi Bussells, Tina Herbert, and Tyler Bailey voted to keep the ban in place.

All declined to speak with media after the vote, however Mayor Rickenmann released a statement saying in part:

Tonight’s vote was not taken lightly. Every member of City Council grappled with the difficult balance between our city’s deeply held values and the fiscal responsibilities we owe to our residents.

Make no mistake: Columbia will never tolerate abuse of any kind. While no violations of the 2021 ordinance have been reported in the past three years, we remain fully committed to protecting every young person in our community. Mechanisms exist to report abuse, and we are prepared to enforce them to the fullest extent of the law.

We faced an undeniable reality, and preserving an ordinance under legal challenge would have put millions of critical state funding at risk. Funds that support public safety, basic city services, and the day-to-day operations that make Columbia work. The cost of inaction was too high. This vote is not a retreat from our values. It is a recognition we must act strategically to protect our residents. 

As Mayor, I remain committed to both the dignity of every individual and the sustainability of the city we all share. We do not and will not allow abuse in Columbia, South Carolina. I promise you that.

Tuesday’s meeting comes a day after Attorney General Alan Wilson announced his candidacy for governor. Wilson has threatened legal action and the loss of $3.7 million if the ban was not removed by the city.

“This pertained to children. It’s easy to overlook that and talk about the performative politics and the $3.7 million. At the end of the day, they just passed the buck on protecting our children,” says Jessica Thomas, who is running for Columbia City Mayor in 2026 against Mayor Rickenmann.

“We want a Columbia that is more inclusive more accepting and safe for everybody,” says Byrd.